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Beth's Picks: Tinycards by Duolingo
Is there anything that the Duolingo Apps can't do? Their newest project, Tinycards, is an excellent way to review your Romance languages anytime, anywhere. Tinycards is a free flashcard program, available online or as a mobile app. I highly recommend adding this to your language arsenal! It's a perfect way to study your target language, even if you just have a few minutes to spare.
You can access flashcards based on lessons you've already completed on Duolingo. While Duolingo strengthens general language skills, Tinycards focuses on vocabulary. The app has a number of brand-new features designed to enhance your language learning experience. My favorite aspect of the new app is that
you can hear the correct pronunciation of each flashcard . I enco
urage you to use this feature each time you test yourself with the flashcards; it's lots of fun to use as a supplement to the classic Duolingo app.Tinycards will even text you a gentle reminder to keep playing if you skip a day!
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Language corners: the best way to practice your target language
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| The Port Washington studio |
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Over the years, students
have asked me the best way to encourage daily language practice.
I feel it is important to create a special spot in the house to practice your language each day, even if it's just for 15 minutes. Research has shown that daily practice, even for a short time, leads to much better results than reviewing once a week for an extended period.
You don't need to be fluent, just adventurous and ready to learn. Keep cherished books, magazines, souvenirs, music, artwork, films and whatever inspires you in one location to help make language learning a pleasure rather than a chore. Let's get started!
Tip 1: S
urround yourself with items relating to your target language.
I love bringing back touristy mementos from my travels, such as figurines
, posters and magazines. The Lurie Language studios reflect my philosophy of creating an oasis in order to make the language learning process as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. Students at Lurie Language are surrounded with interesting and authentic items from Europe and Latin America that are great conversation starters in their target language.
Tip 2:
Your language corner can be as simple as a bookshelf or as elaborate as a extra room...
A language corner is the perfect way to stay focused on your language studies while remaining organized. I love having one place where I can relax and read my beloved French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese magazines and books!
Post-Its make it easy to label things in your home so that you can memorize the names of household objects in your target language. You can either create your own notes or invest in Flashsticks, which are pre-made sticky notes designed for language learning. They're available on Amazon for beginner, intermediate and advanced students.
Tip 3:
Your daily language routine..
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So how do you set up a language routine?
Adults: park yourself in a comfortable armchair and do what you enjoy the most. For me, it's reading an article in one of my favorite magazines, such as Chateleine (Quebec) Grazia (Italy), Vanidades (Spain) or Vogue (Portugal).
As for children: the goal is to set your child on the path of lifelong learning. Language skills take time to develop, so it's more beneficial to sit with your child for 15 or 20 minutes a day than to work for hours at a time on a weekly basis. Language learning should be something exciting, not a chore. You can set up different themes for each day of "language time." One day, you can discuss the seasons or the weather in your child's target language. The next day, you could look at a calendar and talk about the months and days of the week.
Communication is key! Every child learns differently. You can read books to your child in the target language or listen to an audio recording. Parents should not be concerned about perfect pronunciation . Far more important is to share your enthusiasm and transmit the message that language learning is a great adventure that you can share. Activities like these may become dull after a while, so it's important to incorporate creative projects into your language routine. Afterwards, your child can enjoy free play and even invite friends to join in.
Keep reading to learn about some basic suggestions for your language corner! I've broken the list into the absolute essentials and added some extras.
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Setting up and customizing your language corner at home
Tip 4:
Create an ideal language corner for kids with fun games and visuals
Each language corner is unique. When you announce that it's
"French time" or "Spanish time," you encourage the anticipation and enthusiasm which will last a lifetime. Here are some ideas to get you started.
THE ESSENTIALS
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A bulletin board.
"Language time" is the perfect opportunity to unplug yourself from the digital world. You can use a bulletin board to hang up your child's language projects, posters related to the target language, or new vocabulary.
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Books.
Go for classics from the culture of your child's target language, rather than translations of English books. The Little Prince is perfect for older students learning French, and Pinocchio is a wonderful Italian story. Younger children will love the beautifully illustrated "This is" series (This Is Paris, This is Rome, This is Venice) by
Miroslav Sasek.
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Labels. An
easy, inexpensive way to familiarize your child with words in his or her target language! All you need is a pack of post-its. You can label household items (clocks, doors, chairs, etc.) with their names in your child's target language.
- Art supplies. Paper, crayons, markers, scissors, glue sticks, paper bags (to make puppets and other crafts so your child can make up his/her own conversation!)
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A world map. An atlas or globe also work well!
Lakeshore Learning has dozens of maps and resources, especially for children learning Spanish.
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Puzzles.
Interactive puzzles are best! Melissa and Doug make puzzles that say the numbers and alphabet aloud in Spanish
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Calendars.
Young children love interacting with velcro calendars. It is a great routine to get into at the start of each language session. Let your child set the day, date, weather and season and recite the date aloud.
Tip 5: The Extras: highly recommended enrichment!
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Realia: these are decorations native to the country or countries of your target language. Examples of this would be Eiffel Tower figurines, fleur-de-lis decorations, flags, coloring books, or cookie tins.
It's also fun to surprise your kids with small, inexpensive gifts such as these Eiffel Tower pens from Oriental Trading.
- Talking toys. An excellent choice for younger kids. The French company Corolle makes wonderful talking dolls. You can also buy Language Little dolls, Giovanni the Italian talking bear, or a "gondolier" dog that sings "O Sole Mio." Toys like Talking Dora can also bring language learning to life.
- Cooking supplies. Try doing a monthly cooking project related to your child's target language! You can purchase madeleine pans or a pizzelle maker, or make quesadillas and Mexican hot chocolate at home with your child.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
The consistency of daily language time is comforting to children. Keep it fun and lighthearted and
your child will begin to look forward to it. The staff at
Lurie Language is currently developing a new service to help you create a joyful at-home language experience for yourself and your children! Stay tuned...
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The best places to practice your Romance Language
It's not necessarily where you would think. Many of Europe's large cities such as Paris, Milan, Madrid and Lisbon are not conducive to second language acquisition. Why? Because people either speak English fluently already or are intent on improving their
English!
Instead, head for the smaller cities and small towns as far away from the capital as possible.
Here you will find a slower pace of life as well as people who are genuinely interested in communicating with you in THEIR native language, rather than English. I have found this to be true time and again.
For example, while I was in Portugal last year, I had my best linguistic experiences in small, out-of-the-way places like Ericeira, a gorgeous beach/fishing town on the western coast of Portugal, about 22 miles northwest of the capital, Lisbon . As an exchange student in France, I found that a quieter cities, like Tours in the Loire Valley, Salamanca in Spain, and Genova in Italy were the best places to practice Romance languages. Keep practicing and DON'T aim for perfection!
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